Family Flowers Only by Grief Ireland

This week I sit down with Brittany Dowling who shares the heartbreaking story of losing her husband Danny Dowling who died suddenly at just 36 following an epileptic seizure known as SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy).

Danny was a devoted father to two young boys and a well-known business owner, running a much-loved lodge in the Wicklow Mountains. His sudden death has left an unimaginable void in Brittany's life and in the lives of those who knew and loved him.

In this episode Brittany speaks about the shock of losing Danny so unexpectedly, the reality of navigating life and motherhood in the aftermath, and the deep love and village that continues to carry her through.

This is a powerful and emotional conversation about sudden loss, family, and learning to keep going when everything changes in an instant.

For those who may need support in their own grief journey:

• Tickets for my Parent Loss Grief Workshop in Athlone – April 19th can be found here:

https://www.griefireland.com/grief-retreat/p/grief-workshop-for-partner-loss-athlone

• You can also learn more about my community membership After the Flowers, where members can access full video episodes, support resources and a private community space:

https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

This week I sit down with Joanna McNulty who shares the devastating and very recent loss of her father Joachim McNulty.

Joachim was a seasoned fisherman who knew the sea well but tragically lost his life when his car slid down the slipway at Belderrig Pier in Mayo and entered the water. The pier surface had become dangerously slippery due to moss and algae and he was unable to escape the vehicle.

Joanna joins me in the very acute early stages of grief to speak about what happened, the shock and devastation of losing her dad in such preventable circumstances, and the reality of navigating grief so soon after a tragedy.

Alongside sharing her father’s story Joanna is determined that no other family should experience the same loss. She is now advocating for proper maintenance and safety standards across Ireland’s piers so that something like this cannot happen again.

This is an incredibly raw and powerful conversation about grief and also about the need for safety measures to be implimented immediately

You can support Joanna’s campaign by signing her petition here:
https://c.org/ZNbyTcyjdg

For those who may need support in their own grief journey:

• Tickets for my Parent Loss Grief Workshop in Athlone – April 19th can be found here:
https://www.griefireland.com/grief-retreat/p/grief-workshop-for-partner-loss-athlone

• You can also learn more about my community membership After the Flowers, where members can access full video episodes, support resources and a private community space:
https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

This week I sit down with Rachel Gotto, a trauma and crisis coach and clinical hypnotherapist, who shares both her personal story of loss and the work she now does supporting others through trauma and grief.

Rachel speaks about the devastating loss of her husband Nick, who died in a tragic accident when she was six months pregnant with their first child. She also reflects on the earlier loss of her brother Dominic at a young age, a grief that had a profound impact on her life and the path she would eventually take.

Drawing from both lived experience and her professional work, Rachel offers powerful insight into trauma, grief, and the ways people can become stuck in their pain as well as how they can begin to gently move through it.

It’s a thoughtful and deeply insightful conversation, full of wisdom for anyone navigating loss or supporting someone who is.

You can learn more about Rachel and her work at www.rachelgotto.com, and find her on Instagram at @rachelvgotto.

This episode of Family Flowers Only is kindly supported by Flowers.ie.

Flowers.ie is an Irish business helping people send thoughtful, beautiful flowers across Ireland, whether it’s to celebrate, say thank you, or simply let someone know you’re thinking of them during difficult times.

You can find them online at www.flowers.ie and follow along on social media:
Instagram: @flowers.ie
Facebook: flowers.ie
TikTok: @flowers.ie_

A big thank you to Flowers.ie for supporting the podcast and helping these important conversations reach more people.

This week, I sit down with Tommy Martin who shares the deeply traumatic loss of his brother Chris who died suddenly from an asthma attack in front of him.

Tommy speaks openly about the shock of that moment, trying to save his brother by performing CPR, and the lasting impact that night had on him. He reflects on how the trauma changed him, how he tried to bury his grief, and how eventually it all caught up with him.

We also talk about the later loss of his father, and the complicated feelings that followed, including regret, reflection, and the weight of things left unsaid.

This is a powerful and honest conversation about trauma, sibling loss, father loss, and the importance of allowing yourself to feel what you’ve been carrying.

For tickets to upcoming Grief workshops please visit www.griefireland.com

For watch Podcast Video episodes in full and have early access to episodes plus a full supportive membership community with live support calls and therapeutic practises and more please join the "After the Flowers Membership" here

https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

This week I sit down with Zoe Williams who shares the heartbreaking loss of her brother Lee who died from cancer at just 27 years old.

Zoe speaks openly about what it was like to watch her brother become ill at such a young age, the shock of losing him when life should have been stretching out in front of him, and the deep bond they shared as siblings.

She reflects on the aftermath of his death, the silence, and the space he left behind.

This is a tender and honest conversation about loosing someone far too soon, and learning how to carry them with you in the years that follow.

For more information on Grief Retreats please visit www.griefireland.com

To WATCH podcast episodes and find real support in the membership - https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

This week I sit down with Lyn Kennedy for an honest conversation about two very different but equally profound kinds of loss.

Lyn first speaks about her wonderful dad Peter who developed depression later in life and struggled openly with his mental health before dying by suicide. She reflects on what it was like to witness that decline, the impact it had on their family, and the shock and grief that follows such a complex loss.

We then move into Lyn’s own journey with secondary infertility, the seven-year struggle to have another baby and the emotional toll of longing, hope, and uncertainty. Lyn shares candidly about what that chapter looked like for her and where that journey has led.

This is a conversation about love, resilience, and the many forms grief can take, both sudden and slow, visible and invisible.

For more information on Lyns work you will find her on Instagram @lynkennedyphotography

For more information on The Grief Workshops please visit www.griefireland.com

This week I sit down with Evan Daly, who speaks with such love and honesty about losing his dad Iggy to an extremely aggressive cancer, Cholangiocarcinoma. Evan’s dad died just one month to the day after his diagnosis, and Evan reflects on the courage and calm acceptance his dad showed from the very beginning and how that strength carried their family through the hardest weeks of their lives.

Beyond the loss itself, this conversation gently opens into something many people experience after grief, loosing your way, feeling disconnected from your body, your routine, and yourself. Evan shares his perspective as an online coach, speaking about compassion, empathy, and meeting yourself where you are, especially after loss, when motivation and structure can feel impossible.

We also talk about Evan’s coaching platform app Glean and how movement, routine, and self-kindness can become supports rather than pressures during grief.

For anyone looking for additional support you’ll find my membership space After the Flowers here https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

For upcoming Grief Workshops - visit https://www.griefireland.com/

For more information about the incredible work Evan is doing visit: https://www.gleanapp.com

This week I sit down with Roz McElwee for an honest and moving conversation. Roz speaks about loosing her beloved mom to cancer.

Interwoven throughout this episode is a very open discussion about baby loss, fertility struggles, miscarriage, and the journey toward surrogacy. Roz shares her story with such vulnerability, touching on the quiet grief that so many people carry while trying to build a family often in silence.

This is a conversation about layered loss, grieving a parent while also navigating the heartbreak and hope that comes with fertility challenges and the strength it takes to keep going when life doesn’t unfold as expected.

For those looking for ongoing support, I’ve created a private membership space called After the Flowers.

You can find more information here https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

Content note: This episode includes discussion of suicide, mental health struggles, and family estrangement.

In this weeks episode I’m joined by Ailbhe O'Donnell, who shares her experience of loss, survival, and the long-term impact of family estrangement.

Ailbhe speaks openly about loss in its many forms the loss of family connection, the loss of identity, the loss of belonging and what it means to grieve people who are still alive.

This episode also explores Alva’s journey through profound mental health struggles in her early adulthood, her experience of feeling unsupported at critical moments, and the slow, hard process of rebuilding a life rooted in self-worth, resilience, and compassion. At its heart, this is a conversation about survival, and learning how to become your own source of care when no one else can.

This episode does not seek to assign blame or make allegations about any individual. All reflections shared are from Ailbhe’s personal perspective, memory, and emotional experience and are presented as such.

Listener Care

This episode may be difficult for some listeners. Please take care while listening, pause if you need to, or skip this episode entirely if it feels like too much right now.

If this conversation brings anything up for you, support is available:

• Ireland: Samaritans — 116 123 (24/7)

• Contact your GP or local mental health services

• International listeners: please seek crisis or mental health support services in your own country

You don’t have to go through this alone.

After the Flowers – Grief Support Membership

If this episode has resonated with you, I’ve recently opened a gentle support space called After the Flowers, a low-cost monthly membership for people navigating grief in all its forms.

It’s a place to connect with other people who understand, take part in group conversations and live Zoom support calls, and access sessions designed to support the nervous system through grief, including breath work, meditation, EFT, and grounding practices. Members also receive exclusive access to podcast video episdoes and conversations.

There’s no pressure it’s simply there if and when it feels right for you.

You can join here

https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

This week’s episode is a catch-up conversation with previous guest Sophia Murphy where we reflect on how she has navigated Christmas and the months since we last spoke.

Sophia’s grief journey is complex and deeply personal. In this episode, she speaks about surviving childhood sexual abuse at the hands of her father, the long-term impact that trauma has had on her life, and the work she has done around healing. She also shares her experience of engaging in restorative justice, including visiting her father in prison to confront the past, and how this process has supported her own recovery.

This is an honest, thoughtful conversation about trauma, survival, and the different paths people take toward healing. We also reference our previous episode together which listeners may wish to revisit for further context. Just search for Family Flowers Only with Sophia Murphy.

⚠️ Content notice: This episode contains discussion of childhood sexual abuse, sexual assault, and trauma, which some listeners may find distressing. Please take care while listening.

For those looking for ongoing support, I’ve created a private membership space called After the Flowers.

Join here - https://after-the-flowers.circle.so/checkout/after-the-flowers-membership

To hear more from Sophia her own podcast is called "Having the chats with Peter and Sophia" and you can find that wherever you get your podcasts